The present invention involves an apparatus and a method for the filling of pressurized lubricant reservoirs such as is found on air oilers and the like.
A vast number of industrial operations require some type of lubrication in order to operate machinery or tools. It is common for lubricants to be conveyed within a particular machine using a pressurized system to facilitate distribution of an adequate quantity of lubricant within the machinery itself. For example, high speed manufacturing equipment may require an internal pressurized lubrication system where gravity fed systems are unable to adequately deliver lubricant throughout a particular system. Typical manufacturing equipment includes robot head assemblies having piston and cylinder mechanisms for actuation. It is common for such machines to have a reservoir of lubricant that is part of the pressurized lubrication system. Typically, the reservoir must be refilled on a periodic schedule of maintenance. This schedule may entail, for example, a daily or semi-daily refill of the lubricant reservoir for a particular machine. Many times, due to clearances required for machine part or product movements, or due to other maintenance considerations, the size of the lubricant reservoir cannot be enlarged to reduce the frequency of refilling such reservoirs. As a result, a regular refilling schedule must be followed.
Since the lubricant reservoir must, at some point, become pressurized as part of the internal lubrication system, it is sometimes necessary to shut down the machinery to refill the lubricant reservoir. During the refilling operation, a cap or plug must be removed from the lubricant reservoir. If the lubrication system were to remain pressurized during the cap removal, lubricant may come out of the reservoir and onto exterior equipment surfaces and the manufactured product. The periodic shutdowns required in meeting a regular lubrication refilling schedule result in an inherent inefficiency in the operation of such machinery.
The ramifications of time used during the performance of the process of shutting down and restarting industrial equipment can ripple through a workforce. Usually, there are specific and sometimes timely procedures to be followed during the shutdown and startup process. In addition, lockdown and tagout procedures have to be followed. Besides the time required of maintenance personnel, the time taken during a shutdown can idle manufacturing and assembly personnel for lack of operational equipment.
In addition, the assembly of various pieces of machinery in an industrial operation may place pressurized lubricant reservoirs in serviceable, yet awkward locations or positions. As a result, additional inefficiencies may arise in the performance of the regular lubrication schedule, as operations personnel must take additional time to accommodate the position of the filler for a lubricant reservoir. Such awkward placement of filler access can result in spillage onto the machinery and elsewhere, and perhaps of even more concern, the failure of operations personnel to perform the desired service to machinery and tools.
The present invention is an apparatus and a method to reduce the inefficiencies arising from the refilling of pressurized lubrication reservoirs. The present invention is an apparatus having a storage tank of lubricant capable of being pressurized for the delivery of the lubricant to the individual lubricant reservoirs of pieces of machinery or tools.
Preferably, the apparatus is comprised of a tank for the storage of lubricant prior to the delivery of the lubricant to the individual lubricant reservoirs on one or several pieces of machinery. The storage tank is connected with at least a line and a valve to a source of pressurized fluid, such as pressurized air, that will be used to overcome a threshold pressure required to move the lubricant from the storage tank to the individual lubricant reservoirs. It is possible for the source of pressurized fluid to be detachably connected from the storage tank via a quick release coupling wherein the source of pressurized fluid may be moved and used on additional storage tanks as described in the present application. The storage tank is also connected to a means for distributing the lubricant to individual lubricant reservoirs. For example, a piping manifold with valves to isolate lines leading to individual lubricant reservoirs will suitably distribute pressurized lubricant to the reservoirs. The present invention may additionally comprise check valves as appropriate to prevent backflow of lubricant from an individual lubricant reservoir to the manifold, other commonly connected individual lubricant reservoirs, the storage tank, or the source of pressurized fluid, such as an air compressor.
An object of the present invention is to reduce the inefficiencies arising from the refilling of pressurized lubrication reservoirs. As part of a typical maintenance schedule, the present invention is intended to reduce the amount of time required to refill individual lubricant reservoirs on industrial machinery and tools. The refilling of the lubricant reservoirs may be conducted during the operation of the associated equipment. For example, the refilling operation may be performed during the interval between operating cycles of a robot head assembly. The present invention can minimize the inconvenience of awkwardly placed filler access by the installation of piping to a manifold that relocates the maintenance operations to a readily accessible location on or near a piece of industrial equipment. In addition, the present invention can include a manifold connecting several individual reservoirs to a storage tank.
An object of the present invention is to reduce the frequency of engaging in the process of shutting down and restarting industrial equipment in order to perform the maintenance task of refilling the lubricant reservoir of a pressurized lubrication system. The present invention provides a pressurized refilling mechanism wherein it is not required that the machinery or tool works be halted in order to refill a lubricant reservoir. The present invention describes a process whereby lubricant is transferred from a storage tank by a pressure sufficient to overcome the threshold pressure generated within a given internal pressurized lubrication system. As a result, the present invention can reduce the amount of downtime on the machinery resulting from the refilling of the lubricant reservoirs.
In addition to the novel features and advantages mentioned above, other objects and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent from the following descriptions of the drawings and preferred embodiments.